Rising awareness about mutual fund among retail investors has helped register record-break inflow of over Rs 12, 400 crore in equity mutual fund in April. pushing the assets under management to a record Rs 8 lakh crore.
According to AMFI data, equity funds, which also include equity-linked saving schemes (ELSS), saw net inflows of Rs 12400 crore in April, compared to Rs 6657 crore in the preceding month. The rise in volume was 86 percent compared to the last month.
The anxiety over the long-term equity gain tax seems over. Overall, mutual fund schemes witnessed an inflow of Rs 1.4 lakh crore last month as compared to redemptions of Rs 50,752 crore in March due to new tax on long-term equity gains.
Besides, liquid funds or money market category -- with investments in cash assets such as treasury bills, certificates of deposit and commercial paper for shorter horizon -- witnessed an infusion of over Rs 1.16 lakh crore. In contrast, a net sum of Rs 436 crore and Rs 54 crore was pulled out from gilt and gold exchange traded fund (ETF) respectively.
The assets base of the MF industry, comprising 42 players, increased to Rs 23.25 lakh crore from Rs 21.36 lakh crore.
SIPs have been the preferred route for retail investors in mutual funds as it helps them bring down market timing risks. It is an investment vehicle that allows investors to invest in small amounts periodically, instead of lump sum amount. The frequency of investment is usually weekly, monthly or quarterly.